緇門警訓 1.32

1.32

教必尊僧何謂也。僧也者以佛為性。以如來為家。以法為身。以慧為命。以禪悅為食。故不恃俗民。不營世家。不修形骸。不貪生不懼死。不溽乎五味。其防身有戒。攝心有定。辨明有慧。語其戒也潔清三惑。而畢身不污。語其定也恬思慮正。神明而終日不亂。語其慧也。崇德辨惑而必然。以此修之之謂因。以此成之之謂果。其於物也有慈有悲。有大誓有大惠。慈也者。當欲安萬物。悲也者。常欲拯眾苦。誓也者。誓與天下見真諦。惠也者。惠群生以正法。神而通之。天地不能揜。密而行之。鬼神不能測。其演法也辨說不滯。其護法也奮不顧身。能忍人之不可忍。能行人之不能行。其正命也丐食而食而不為恥。其寡欲也糞衣綴鉢而不為貧。其無爭也可辱而不可輕。其無怨也可同而不可損。以實相待物。以至慈修己。故其於天下也。能必和能普敬。其語無妄故其為信也至。其法無我故其為讓也誠。有威可警有儀可則。天人望而儼然。能福於世能導於俗。其忘形也委禽獸而不怪。其讀誦也冐寒暑而不廢。以法而出也遊人間遍聚落。視名若谷響。視利若遊塵。視物色若陽艶。煦嫗貧病瓦合輿㒗。而不為卑。以道而處也雖深山窮谷。草其衣木其食。晏然自得。不可以利誘。不可以勢屈。謝天子諸侯而不為高。其獨立也以道自勝。雖形影相吊而不為孤。其群居也以法為屬。會四海之人而不為混。其可學也雖三藏十二部。百家異道之書。無不知也。他方殊俗之言無不通也。祖述其法則有文有章也。行其中道則不空不有也。其絕學也離念清淨純真一如。不復有所分別也。僧乎其為人至。其為心溥。其為德備。其為道大。其為賢非世之所謂賢也。其為聖非世之所謂聖也。出世殊勝之賢聖也。僧也如此可不尊乎。

Why is it said that the teaching must honour the saṅgha? The saṅgha takes the Buddha as its nature, the Tathāgata as its home, the Dharma as its body, wisdom as its life, and the joy of dhyāna as its nourishment. Therefore they do not rely on common folk, do not establish worldly households, do not pamper the physical frame, do not cling to life, do not fear death, and do not crave the five flavours. To guard their bodies they have śīla; to gather their minds they have samādhi; to discern clearly they have prajñā. Speaking of their śīla: it purifies the three delusions, remaining untainted to the end of life. Speaking of their samādhi: their thoughts are tranquil and aligned, their spirit luminous and undistracted all day long. Speaking of their prajñā: it exalts virtue and resolves confusion with unerring certainty. Practicing with these is called the cause; consummating with these is called the fruit. Toward all beings they have loving-kindness and compassion; they have great vows and great beneficence. Loving-kindness: ever wishing to bring peace to all beings. Compassion: ever wishing to rescue from all sufferings. Vows: vowing that all under heaven shall behold the ultimate truth. Beneficence: bestowing the saddharma upon living beings. Working through spiritual penetration, heaven and earth cannot conceal them; acting in secret, ghosts and spirits cannot fathom them. When expounding the Dharma, their eloquent speech flows without hindrance; when protecting the Dharma, they press forward heedless of their own bodies. They can endure what others cannot endure; they can practice what others cannot practice. In their right livelihood, they beg for food to eat without shame; in having few desires, they wear rag-robes and patch their pātras without feeling poor. In their lack of contention, they may be insulted but cannot be held in contempt; in their lack of resentment, they may be joined with others but cannot be degraded. They treat all things with the true mark [of reality]; they cultivate themselves with supreme compassion. Therefore, toward all under heaven, they can unfailingly harmonize and universally respect. Their speech is free from falsehood, so their trustworthiness is consummate; their Dharma is devoid of self, so their deference is sincere. They have dignity that can awe and deportment that can serve as a model; devas and humans gaze upon them with solemn reverence. They can bring blessings to the world and guide the common folk. In forgetting their physical form, they entrust themselves among birds and beasts without thinking it strange; in their chanting and recitation, they brave cold and heat without ceasing. When they go forth in accordance with the Dharma, they wander among people and traverse settlements, viewing fame like an echo in a valley, viewing gain like drifting dust, viewing material appearances like a mirage, comforting the poor and sick and mingling with menial laborers without feeling debased. When they abide in accordance with the Dao, even in deep mountains and secluded valleys, they clothe themselves in grasses and feed on wild plants, serene and self-possessed; they cannot be seduced by profit, nor bent by force. Declining emperors and feudal lords, they do not consider themselves superior. In their independence, they conquer through the Dao; even when only body and shadow console each other, they do not feel solitary. In their communal living, they are kin through the Dharma; gathering people from the four seas, they do not fall into confusion. As for what they can study: even the three baskets and twelve divisions of scripture, as well as the texts of the hundred schools and heterodox paths—there is nothing they do not know. The languages of other lands and different customs—there is nothing they do not understand. When transmitting their ancestral Dharma, they possess literary refinement and structure; when practicing its Middle Way, they adhere neither to emptiness nor to existence. In their transcending of learning, they are free of thought, pure, genuine, and of one suchness, having no further discrimination. Ah, the saṅgha! As human beings they are consummate; their mind is vast; their virtue is complete; their Dao is great. Their worthiness is not what the world calls worthiness; their sagehood is not what the world calls sagehood. They are the transcendent, extraordinary worthies and sages. Being such as this, can the saṅgha not be honoured?